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Small margins cost Scots significantly

Scotland under-20 put in an improved performance in their second pool game of the JWC against Samoa at the ECOLight Stadium, Pukehoke, yet fell short, going down 27-18, the difference in points all coming from the tee.

It was a tit-for-tat battle, yet Scotland’s inability to capitalise on chances at goal proved to be the difference between the two sides as Samoa’s 100 percent kicking record, was superior to Scotland’s two successful kicks from five attempts.

Scotland under-20 head coach Sean Lineen, said:

“Looking back at the game, it was three tries apiece, we displayed a lot of great stuff in attack and we fronted up well defensively against a very big and physical Samoan outfit.

“We scored three cracking tries and a lot of boys really stuck their hand up today – Jamie Ritchie was excellent in his first game, Jamie Farndale was full of energy around the park and Zander Fagerson made a huge impression when he came on.

“Unfortunately, we were exposed in the transition phases of play, and sometimes we were just that fraction of a second too slow, but this is all part of the boys development and the sharpness will hopefully come with playing at this high level.

“Had we kicked our goals, the game would have been a draw, which is a bit disappointing, but these are the small margins we, as a group, need to work on to tighten up.”

A conversion was the difference at half-time with stand-off Rory Hutchinson kicking an early penalty yet failing to add the extras to wing Jamie Farndale’s try on the cusp of the half-time - the Pacific Islanders converting their sole try and adding a penalty to give them a 10-8 lead at the break.

The Samoans gained the upper-hand in the early exchanges of the second-half, as they widened the gap further, with two converted tries in the opening ten minutes of the half, stretching their lead to 24-8.

Wing Sam Pecquer replied on behalf of Scotland only three minutes later as he crossed the whitewash, before a 20 minute period of calm on the scoreboard. 24-13.

The next score came through the boot of opposition stand-off William Talataina Mu, landed a penalty to maintain his 100 percent record throughout the game and extending his side’s lead.

Scotland’s riposte came through lock Jamie Ritchie, who scurried over the line on his under-20s debut, yet it wasn’t quite enough as the referee called for full time before the Scots could march any further on their comeback trail.

* member of Scottish Rugby's Regional Academy supported by sportscotland Institute of Sport

**Elite Development Player 2013/14

The IRB Junior World Cup 2014 is being held in Auckland, New Zealand. Scotland's pool games are against:

South Africa (Monday 2 June, k/o 3.35pm local) - see highlights here

Samoa (Friday 6 June, k/o 3.35pm local)

New Zealand (Tuesday 10 June, k/o 7.35pm local)

Further fixtures on Sunday 15 June and Friday 20 June are dependent on results. Last year, Scotland finished in 10th place in the tournament. Auckland is 11 hours ahead of the UK.

Broadcast coverage

Scotland's game against New Zealand (Tuesday 10 June) will be shown live on Sky Sports 2 HD, with coverage starting at 8.30am (UK). Highlights of Scotland's other fixtures will be accessible approximately 12 hours after the end of each game. Due to broadcast rights issues, these matches will not be streamed live in the UK.